Endgame
by 2fast2live
Summary: An alternate ending to Endgame - Possible spoilers for season finale - Chalant all the way (as usual).


**This is just a one-shot. Partially because I miss writing Chalant and partially because I'm still crying over the season finale. HOW COULD THAT HAPPEN?**

**I'm still chanting - he's not gone forever. he's not gone forever. **

**So, after watching Endgame, and realising the complete lack of Chalant, I decided to do my very own ending. So read! I hope you like it! **

* * *

**Endgame**

"_Aren't you supposed to be working today?" _

"Nope. Black Canary's given me two months leave. She was scared I was going to try to force the helmet off Doctor Fate or something. Not my fault he's been around more often lately."

Dick sighed as he reached her door. He raised his hand to ring the doorbell but froze midway. He spun round quickly and faced the others, not really bothering to cover up his uncomfortable expression.  
"We have to do this, you know?" Artemis sighed.  
"I know. I just have no idea how we're going to explain this. She's going to be so mad."  
"I told you we should've included her in this from the start." Wally mumbled.  
"Let us not waste any more time." Khaldur said, looking between Dick and the doorbell.

"_I might be in town next week, but I'm not sure yet. I'll call you tomorrow or something and I'll let you know."_

"Okay... Let's do this." Dick sighed as he rung her doorbell.

"Just a minute!" Zatanna called out. "Zach, I've got to go. I'll call you later okay? Bye!"  
She quickly ran into her room, dropped the phone on her bed, and grabbed the first sweatshirt she could find. It happened to be one of Dick's old ones. It had a huge red 'R' on it. She ran to the door and opened it, without bothering to look through the peep-hole.  
"Oh! Hey!" She grinned once she saw Dick and Wally.

Dick took in her appearance for a second or so. He didn't even know she still _had _that thing. Her hair was damp, so he figured she'd just gotten out of the shower. Good thing Wally insisted they'd stop to get burgers on the way...

"Hey... Nice." Dick smirked. She bit the edge of the sleeve, hoping her small fist would hide the strong blush that was forming. "We need to talk to you."  
"Yeah, sure. Come in... I haven't had time to go grocery shopping yet, so if you guys are hungry we could order in pizza or-"

It was like she'd seen a ghost. One minute she was practically bright red for being in only a pair of short jeans shorts and a 'Robin' sweatshirt, the next she was pale and almost shaking. Dick stood right behind her, in case she fainted or something. Wally tried his very best to avoid her eyes, knowing he wouldn't be able to handle seeing the hurt.  
"Tanna..." Artemis didn't really know what she wanted to say. She'd spent the last hour practicing over and over again, but her words were suddenly gone.  
"We owe you an explanation." Khaldur calmly stated, hoping to break the ice.  
"The hell you do! Why is _he _here?" Zatanna shot Khaldur a very, _very_ angry glare. "And Artemis is supposed to be dead, so why is she here too?"  
"We needed to get behind enemy lines. Khaldur and Artemis went undercover." Dick sighed.

He'd come prepared to be hit, punched, kicked, and possibly even cursed by her fascinating powers. He expected any of those reactions. So when he looked towards her, and found her pale, in tears, he froze. He had no solutions for this reaction. What could he do now? She'd hate him for the rest of his life. He'd done this. He'd pushed her away when she needed him the most and took everyone she loved.

"But it was my idea to leave you out of it." Artemis spoke up, suddenly making Zatanna's attention turn back to her side. "I thought you wouldn't be able to handle it, so I told them it would be best to leave you in the dark."  
"Then we realised we actually needed you." Wally said, regrettably.  
"So I came to you and got what we needed from you." Dick frowned instantly.

He remembered that night all too well. It was one of the many reasons he loved her so much. She was always so _damn good_. He'd been with other girls after their breakup but none of them could outmatch Zatanna Zatara. She was romantic, yet wild. It drove him insane. But he let it all go, all because of one stupid plan.

"You _used _me?"  
Her voice was barely a whisper, but everyone in the room could feel the pain radiating. Even Wally was certain she'd lash out at one of them sooner or later. He wouldn't be too surprised if he left the building as a frog.  
"We had no choice, Tanna, and we're really sorry." Artemis pleaded.  
"The good news is, we're all safe. We've managed enough information to free the league and no one got hurt." Khaldur assured.  
"_No one got hurt?_ Have you forgotten that Artemis supposedly _died_? That the entire team mourned over her? That I was kept off missions for an entire month, because all I could think was the many ways I could rip _your _head off?" Zatanna directed most of her outrage to Khaldur at that point. He was suddenly wishing she'd focus on Dick once again. "What about them? The team... Do they know about this? Did _anyone _know about this?"  
"The team know now, because we've told them. M'gaan and Conner found out eventually, but they let us play it through." Wally said, hoping it came out correctly.  
"So I'm the last one to know?" There was the hurt in her voice again. Extremely visible for all to see.  
"Zee... I wanted to tell you sooner but-"  
"But you figured _using _me would be a much better option." She spat.

"Look... I understand if you don't ever want to look at us again. I wouldn't blame you. But we do want you to know how sorry we are about all this. We know we made a lot of people cry and we know that we probably hurt you the most. But... Please... Just..."  
Artemis wasn't really sure what she wanted to ask again. She wanted to be forgiven. She wanted to have a girl's night out, not necessarily fighting bad guys. She wanted a double date. She wanted sleepovers. She just wanted a normal, non-heroic, moment with her best friend and practically sister.

"Zee, we really are sorry. But it was all business, I swear. If there had been any way to get you in from the start, that wouldn't compromise you, we would've gone with it."  
Dick wanted to place a hand on her shoulder, but there was a pretty good chance she'd slap it away. He wanted to hold her, like he used to. He just wanted it to be them. _Just them_. Alone... In a confined area perhaps?

"Just please consider our apology, okay? You mean a lot to us, and you already know that we wouldn't have done half of what we did without you." Wally said, still avoiding proper eye contact.

"I... I don't know what to say." Zatanna whispered, the tears never ceasing. "I... I need some time. I need to think."

"We will leave you to it." Khaldur nodded, glancing towards the others before heading towards the door.

"But call us, if you need someone to talk to. Okay?" Artemis said, almost pleadingly. She couldn't lose this friendship.

Zatanna slowly followed them towards the door. Khaldur had already opened it and was in the hallway, pressing the elevator button. She leaned against the doorframe and watched them leave. Khaldur, Wally and Artemis gave Zatanna one last look before entering the elevator. Dick was still as a statue, staring at the ground.  
"Dude, are you coming?" Wally asked, worriedly. "She's still pretty mad and-"  
"I'll catch up with you."

"I said I needed time." Zatanna frowned.  
"We've wasted too much time as it is." Dick sighed. "I planned this out wrong from the start. I should've known that I could only win if you were by my side."  
"You _did _win. Everyone's safe." Zatanna said faintly.  
Dick slowly pushed her back inside her apartment. _Their _apartment. He closed the door behind him, without taking his eyes off her.  
"Yeah... But in a way, you were by my side. I shouldn't have let you go. I was weak and I pushed you away, thinking it would somehow make me stronger."

She silently headed towards her bedroom, Dick followed obviously. Once inside, she pulled off the sweatshirt and tossed it back inside the closet. He tried his very best not think about how extremely sexy she looked in shorts and a black lacy bra. He loved how completely nonchalant she was about getting dressed in front of him. He'd seen every part of her many times before, but whenever something like this would happen, he'd feel as if he were in middle school again. She eventually put on a loose white t-shirt, much to his displeasure.  
"I still need time to think about all this." She said as she dropped her body onto her bed. "I'd actually appreciate it if you left for now. I'd like a nap."  
"Maybe I could nap with you?" Dick asked, raising an eyebrow.  
"Or not." She frowned.

Dick watched as she lied down and pulled the covers over her. He crawled onto the bed soon after and stared at her.  
"I thought I told you to leave." She mumbled, eyes closed already.  
"Then get up and kick me out." He smirked.  
"Fine. Stay. Just shut up and let me sleep."

He wasn't entirely sure how he managed it, but by the time Zatanna was awake, which happened to be past two in the morning, she was smiling and being nice to him again. Or at least, _nicer_. He still wanted to hold her, desperately, but he could tell that she still wasn't okay with that. But he'd made progress, and that was what really mattered right now. He needed something that would make him feel as though he still had a chance with her. He wanted to stay there forever, though he couldn't. He had to head up to the watchtower eventually. Preferably before Black Canary attempted to contact him.

"I'm coming with you."  
Those words completely shook him from whatever thoughts he was having. He couldn't help but feel turned on once he saw her suited up and ready for action. Or magic, whichever worked best.

"Zee... I-"  
"I don't care what you have to say about it. I don't even care what Black Canary has to say about it. I'm not going to stay here all day. I'm still mad at you, at _all _of you. But that doesn't mean that I'm not going to keep an eye on you. Someone's got to make sure nobody else dies in this crazy mission of yours. Even if it is fake."

Her smirk made him believe 'turned on' was a complete understatement.

x.x

Zatanna instantly regretted stepping into the watchtower. Doctor Fate glided by her with his head held high. Dick tried to grab hold of her hand but she sent him an angry glare. She managed to catch a glimpse of the screen Captain Atom, Khaldur'am and Blue Beetle were concentrating on.

"Is something wrong?" Nightwing called out, quickly making his way towards them.

"Natural disasters have escalated. The rest of the league is spread thin saving lives across the globe." Captain Atom stated.  
"It's Black Beetle's MFD's. The magnetic field disruptors, The Reach seated in multiple locations across the Earth, they're causing a deterioration of the planet's magnetic field. Which in return, are causing these not-so-natural disasters. I can locate all the MFD's, but each is defended by Beetle-tech drones, programmed to run interference until the MFD can build up enough steam to go Crysalis and end the world." Blue said.  
"So how do we shut them down?" Atom asked.  
"I don't know, because Black Beetle didn't know. There's no failsafe. This was an endgame."

Zatanna didn't know when she'd taken hold of Dick's hand. But he instantly let go once he saw Lex Luthor on the screen. She excused herself and headed towards her room. Not only was she trying her best to hide yet another huge blush, she had to gather her magic supplies. She wasn't sure just how much power she'd need to fight against this tech. She'd rather not take any chances. She'd rather nobody _die_.

"Would you be okay with working with me?" Dick asked, as he allowed himself into her compartment.  
"I would assume they'd place me with Fate." Zatanna muttered.  
"They would... Unless I request otherwise."  
"Could you?" She looked up, almost expectantly.  
"Will you forgive me?" He raised an eyebrow. She rolled her eyes in response, but he could see the smirk. "I'll request it. Let's get going."

x.x

"Every single Magnetic Field Disruptor must be disabled, before they Crysalis, to guarantee Earth's safety. Each MFD is protected by multiple Beetle tech drone and each drone is the equivalent of a Beetle warrior. Blue Beetle has located twenty MFD's around the world. There are forty of us assembled here, so you'll be in squads of two." Captain Atom called out.

"You've still got time to change your mind about working with me." Zatanna smirked. "You and Batgirl are used to each other."  
"Yeah, but she also told me she wouldn't mind working with Fate, seeing as you two aren't seeing eye to eye." Dick shrugged slightly.  
The reality was, he _needed _to be with her. There was no telling whether or not they'd make it. If these were there last few moments on Earth, he _had _to spend it with her. He'd wasted too much time already.

They soon found themselves in the beautiful city of London. In the middle of London Bridge, completely disrupting the usual traffic, was what they were looking for.  
"Okay, do you think you can take them down so I can disable the MFD?" Dick called out, already throwing a few wingdings here and there.  
"Sure, sounds good to me." Zatanna shrugged.

The drones were quite violent, she'd give them that. One had managed to knock Dick to the ground for a good minute or so. She panicked and almost got hit in the process.  
"I'm good. Got any ideas?" He winced slightly.

If someone looked closely enough, they would've seen the light bulb light up in her head. Of course she could defeat the drones. It was so simple, she should've realised sooner.  
"Seeing as it's Beetle tech... _Fles Tcurtsed_." Surely enough the drones exploded into tiny pieces.

"We're heading back." Dick reported in.  
Zatanna walked towards him and helped him up. She sighed deeply and pulled him into a kiss.  
"_Laeh_." She held him tightly and allowed her magic to work.  
"Would you mind if I kissed you again?" He whispered into her hair.  
"I'd rather wait until we're behind closed doors." She smirked.

x.x

Zatanna quickly pulled Artemis into a hug as soon as she reached the Watchtower. All teams had successfully fulfilled their mission. There was only one left, in the Arctic, which Flash and Impulse were already dealing with.  
"I forgive you; just don't _ever _do anything like that again. Or so help me, I will turn you into a frog." Zatanna almost cried as she held onto her friend.  
"Never again, I promise." Artemis assured her.

Their attention was soon back on the screen. Dick looked troubled; almost as if he wasn't sure they'd make it.  
_  
Recognized: Kid Flash – B03 _

Dick, Zatanna and Artemis quickly turned to find the zeta tube going back to normal. There was no way Wally was going over there alone. Maybe, just maybe, Zatanna could be of assistance. She walked towards the screen and activated the communication system.  
"Watchtower to Rocket. Rocket this is Zatanna. Get your butt to the Arctic; I'm going to need you."

"_Copy that." _

"Zee..." Dick was at a loss for words. Part of him wanted her to stay there. At least there he could be certain she'd survive.  
"We don't have much time. With Rocket's help, I think we can contain this thing and let the speedsters do their work." She practically ordered, already heading towards the zeta tube.

The three were already in action once they got there. Rocket was trying her best to help, but she wasn't really sure how to secure anything. Zatanna had to think fast. She knew Wally was slower than Flash and Impulse and that might cause some problems.

"Nightwing... Wally..." Blue Beetle was trying to find the right way to place his words. He couldn't risk Artemis losing it and running into that thing.  
"Zee, do you think you can do something about this?" Nightwing called out.

Zatanna was already up in the air, her eyes glowing a golden colour. Khaldur shuddered slightly, it reminded him of the time she put on Doctor Fate's helmet.  
"Rocket, shield Wally. Wally, this might slow you down, but at least you won't die." Zatanna said through her comm. "It's show time."

Nightwing couldn't hear any words escape Zatanna's lips, but he knew she was doing something. Rocket successfully shielded Wally, keeping him safe from the MFD. Artemis was already in tears, expecting the worst. Khaldur did his best to keep her at bay. Blue Beetle seemed to be engaged in an argument with his Scarab. Zatanna was fully concentrated. Her arms were waving around, uncontrollably, almost as if she was following the Crysalis phase's movements.

"_I think we're going to make it." _Flash stated.

"Guys, do you think you could go just a little faster?" Blue Beetle called out.  
"I don't think Wally can go faster than this." Artemis cried.  
"Zatanna! Report!" Nightwing ordered. No response. "Zee?"

"_She's shielding us from it. I can feel her magic working here." _Impulse called out.  
_"The Crysalis energy needs an exit... She's working on that." _Wally said, his breath heavy.

"But how does that affect her?" Khaldur wondered, a little too loud for his liking.  
"Zatanna! Report, now!" Nightwing shouted. He knew he had a comm link, but this was an act of desperation.

"You can start slowing down now boys." Zatanna ordered them.  
"Tanna! The Crysalis energy's going down big time. I'm going to need your help to shield it. Got enough energy left?" Rocket yelled from her spot.  
"I'm on it." She muttered. "_Dleihs eht Silasyrc ygrene. Tcetorp Yllaw, Hsalf dna Eslupmi._"  
"Girl... You and you're backwards talk!" Rocket grinned.

Flash, Impulse and Wally soon came to a full stop. The rest would have to be handled by the two girls. Wally placed his hands on his knees and tried to catch a breath. Artemis managed to catch him before he hit the ground.  
"You stupid creature." Artemis cried.  
"Hey babe." He breathed out. "You're still up for Paris right? I just need to sleep for a while first."  
"You're spending two weeks on house lockdown kid mouth."

"Blue, how's it looking?" Impluse asked.  
"I think... We did it." Blue said, eyes wide.

Rocket allowed her arms to drop to her side. She was definitely exhausted now. Zatanna's eyes were finally back to normal; she only wished she could say the same about her physical state. She soon realised she didn't have enough energy to keep herself up.

Nightwing was very grateful for being good with angles. He swiftly caught Zatanna as she fell from the air. He dropped onto his knees in fear she was hurt. She wanted to make sure nobody would die, not even a fake death, so she couldn't be hurt. She just couldn't.

"Let's get her back to The Watchtower." Flash called out. "I think she and Wally need to rest."

"Zee?"  
Nightwing wasn't one to cry. _Especially _on a mission. But seeing her motionless in his arms was driving him off the edge.

"The Crysalis energy might have been too much for her." Blue's voice was almost cracking.  
"But she'll be okay, won't she?" Artemis was on the verge of tears once again. She didn't enjoy crying. She wasn't used to it.  
"I... I'm not sure." Blue looked away.

x.x

Doctor Fate had reluctantly returned to The Watchtower that night. If it were up to him, to hell with his former host. However, Giovanni Zatara wasn't having any of it. The man was throwing the biggest rampage Nabu has ever seen.  
"Where is she?" Fate asked.  
"In the med-bay. Don't bother in trying to get Nightwing out of there, he won't budge." Batman said.

Zatara never really understood Dick Grayson. The boy had taken his daughter out of the cave, against his rules, the very first time they'd met. Zatanna had taken his bike to go round New York with Artemis and got hurt. However, the boy had stayed by her side when he'd become a part of Nabu. For that he'd be eternally grateful. He grew close to his Zatanna. Too close for his liking. Then, he left her. He pushed her away completely. Zatanna joined the Justice League to get away and was met with Doctor Fate. No matter how much Bruce Wayne tried to avoid it, sometimes Batman had to ask Zatanna to work alongside Doctor Fate. Zatara could see the pain whenever that was the case. And now, Dick was back in the picture. Had he regretted leaving his baby girl alone?

"Her heartbeat has been stabilised, but other than that, nothing's changed. I'm not sure what she did to help save us all but-"  
"The Crysalis energy needed an exit and she provided it with one. She overused her magic and might be unconscious for a while. It's not life threatening." Fate said, not really bothering to properly look at her.  
"Let him see her, Nabu. Just this once." Nightwing pleaded.

Doctor Fate stared at him for a good minute or so. Nightwing half expected him to turn and walk out the door without uttering another word. Instead, he found himself face to face with Giovanni Zatara. The look on the man's face almost made Nightwing wish Doctor Fate was back in the picture.  
"Why are you here? I thought you two broke up." Giovanni said, coldly.  
"It was a mistake I'm not willing to make again. I acted stupidly. I didn't think. I'm sorry for the pain I caused your daughter and I promise you I won't ever hurt her again. I lo-"  
"You love her." Giovanni finished. "Richard, you have my blessing. But bear in mind that I will always keep an eye on you."  
"I wouldn't have it any other way, sir." Dick nodded.  
"I must return to the helmet. I wish not to suffer the consequences of breaking a promise with Nabu. She will wake soon. Tell her to take a break from her magic, at least a week."

x.x

Zatanna and Artemis watched as the boys got to work. Wally and Dick were eager about rebuilding Mount Justice. Now that he was officially retired, Dick wanted something to occupy his time. Artemis was back at school and preparing to graduate. Wally juggled university, working with Dick and spending time with Artemis. Zatanna was still working with the League, mostly with Rocket.

It took Dick an entire year to find the courage to propose. He actually managed to tell the entire team before he told Zatanna herself. He begged the team not to tell her they knew before she did. She knew he'd be punished for it. Although, depending on the form of punishment, he might enjoy it. Pushing all dirty thoughts aside, he led his woman out onto the balcony and knelt down on one knee.  
"Dick... What are you doing?" Zatanna asked, eyes wide.  
"Okay... Here goes... Zee, will you marry me?"

He almost punched himself for being completely unromantic. He'd practiced everyday for an entire month and _this_ was the best he could do?

"A-are you serious?" Zatanna was almost in tears. "Of course I'll marry you!"  
"Wow... Really?" His eyes were the ones that were wide now. He picked himself up and placed the ring on her finger. "It was supposed to come out differently. I was _trying _to be romantic, yet nonchalant, about all this but-"

"Why?" Zatanna grinned._ "Be as chalant as you like."_

* * *

**ooooookay, so let me just express the fact that I'm totally sad about the lack of Chalant. Not just because I simply LOVE them, but because they totally left us in the dark about it D: So sad. I still love Young Justice, nonetheless. **

**I just think Zatanna is suuch a great character! And, in all honesty, I have no idea if Zatanna had been a part of that ending, how things would've turned out. So yeah, this whole thing was down to my imagination entirely. Either way, I hope it was a satisfying read! **

**I do have a YJ story in mind (I've had it in mind for a while) but I need to sort things out before actually writing it! Not to mention I might go crazy if I end up writing three full stories at once (Harry Potter and Naruto already drive me insane!). **

**Okay, I can't really remember what else I wanted to say... So I'll just leave it here! Again, I hope you liked that and... yeah! \o **

**Xoxo**


End file.
